Adjustable helmets made up of a front shell, a rear shell and fastening means are well known in the field of sports equipment, and especially in the field of hockey helmets.
U.S. Pat. No. 6,966,075 relates to an adjustable hockey helmet comprising: a back shell having a smooth interference-free sliding surface and two sides, wherein each side comprises two elongated slots and a series of anchoring holes, a front shell having a smooth interference-free sliding surface and two sides, wherein each side comprises a wing element adapted to overlap the interference-free sliding surface of the back shell, two slots and two anchoring holes. The front shell and the back shell are movably connected to each other by a peg inserted within the two elongated slots of the back shell and the two slots of the front shell. The helmet also comprises left and right manually operated locking devices. More particularly, the front shell has a left locking device mounted to the left wing and a right locking device mounted to the right wing. Each of the left and right locking devices has two teeth and is movable between a locked position and a released position. In the locked position, two teeth engage the two anchoring holes of the front shell and two holes of the series of holes of the back shell. In the released position, two teeth do not engage the series of anchoring holes of the back shell for allowing the front shell and the back shell to move in relation to each other.
Against this background, there is a need in the industry for an adjustable helmet where the player can move a single actuator between a first locked position, wherein the first and second shells define a first hollow space for receiving the player's head, a released position, wherein the first and second shells are moveable relative to one another, and a second locked position, wherein the first and second shells define a second hollow space for receiving the player's head, the second hollow space being different than the first hollow space. The single actuator is mounted on the top portion of the helmet such that use of two actuators on each side of the helmet is eliminated.